Home for the Holidays

If it's December, then it's time to get festive!  The decorations have come out, the tree has been transformed, presents have been wrapped.  I love that feeling when you rediscover your treasured Christmas decorations, it's like meeting an old friend for the first time in a year.  For me, this is especially true of my nutcracker collection.

These little guys marched into my life during a trip to York in 2008.  I bought a blue king nutcracker, expecting it to be a one-off item, but since then the collection has ballooned.  Now I have soldiers, counts, pirates, explorers, a whole host of characters that make my Christmas what it is.  Magical.

What else is happening?  This little wooden Christmas windmill also came from York.  Original handcrafted windmills go for hundreds of pounds, and whilst this is only a £20 replica, it is still a lovely and original piece.  The idea is that the candles heat the air, forcing it to rise into the blades, thus turning the windmill.  Inside, a little Nativity is also turned, camels and all.  I must admit, I have been loathed to use it for fear of dropping candle wax all over the place, but it still forms a beautiful decoration for my room.

Lizzie and I have been hard at work creating a beautiful tree with decorations that have meaning.  Some have come from my childhood, whilst others we have bought for each other in previous years.  Sitting proudly on top of it all is Sophia, our Christmas Angel.  We made Sophia last year because we were so unimpressed with the shop selections, and named her after a Parisian hotel where we had such terrible fuss.  Nonetheless, our Sophia has weathered storage pretty well, and will hopefully bring some cheer to our Christmasses for years to come.

Presents wrapped, decorations done, all there is to do now is sit back, relax, and let the celebrations begin.